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Thursday, February 23, 2017

Overcoming Doubt {+ A Look at the New Season Of CNN's Finding Jesus:Faith, Fact Forgery & LifeWay Giveaway}

**Gift card provided in exchange for this post. All thoughts are 100% my own.

Doubt.

That's not something we really want to talk about as Christians is it? After all, we have this idea that if our faith is strong, there leaves no room for doubt! When we admit that we have doubts, does that mean that we are not good Christians?

Let's take a look at the definition of doubt, which states doubt is, ' a feeling of uncertainty or lack of conviction' or to 'feel uncertain about, fear; be afraid of.'. Now, I don't know about you, but I consider myself to be a strong Christian, a person with a lot of faith... but can I say I've never had my doubts? No, I cannot. I've never doubted the existence of God, that I've always been certain of. But other scriptures that I know by heart and truly do believe, sometimes in the midst of hard times it's hard to fully embrace them.

One of my very favorite verses is Jeremiah 29:11: "For I know the plans I have for you, "declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

I know these words by heart, and often find myself repeating them over and over when things are not going according to my plans. And in my life, that has happened often. Even having seen that this is true in my own life, seeing good come from less than ideal situations... when I'm mid crisis, it's hard to believe it. When your health is failing, when a loved one dies unexpectedly, when your spouse loses their job...where is the GOOD in that? How is this God's plan for my life?

Doubt.

It may be fleeting, but it's there... that fear, that unknowing. I think if we were all to be completely open and honest with ourselves, we have all experienced those moments at points in our lives. Even Thomas, one of the 12 disciples, was known for having his doubts as we read about in John 20: 24-29-

Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Doubt in and of itself does not make us a bad Christian... it simply makes us human. It is what we do with that doubt that can either separate us in our relationship with God, or strengthen it. For me, I use those moments to bring my relationship strength. I pray about it. I dig deeper into the Word- I look at the story of Thomas, I look at other scriptures relevant to my struggles. I am a stronger Christian because of my doubts, because they have forced me to dig deeper.

Want to dig even deeper into the story of 'Doubting Thomas', you are going to check out the upcoming new season of CNN's Finding Jesus: Faith, Fact, Forgery:

In case you didn’t get an opportunity to check-out the first season of this hit series, Finding Jesus: Faith, Fact Forgery captivated audiences as well-known Pastors, theologians, and archaeologists, examined famous religious artifacts, and brought to life the places, pilgrimage sites, and people from the Bible and ancient world. This season, one of our episodes focuses on Jesus’ disciple Thomas – or you may have heard of him as “doubting Thomas.” But there is so much more to his life story. His journey to overcome his doubts and fears, and to redeem himself by spreading the Gospel and message of love to a faraway place is an inspiration! It’s also something we can all relate to - as each one of us at one point in our lives have had to struggle and overcome our own doubt and fears in order to fulfill a great challenge in our lives, or even during our faith journey.

The second season premiers Sunday, March 5th, and I for one am looking forward to experiencing it for myself! Will you be watching?

To celebrate the second season, one very lucky reader is going to have a chance to win a $25 LifeWay gift code! Use it towards a new Bible or devotional, some journaling supplies or to fill your Easter baskets this year! Enter using the Rafflecopter form below:

Winner will be contacted via e-mail after giveaway ends, and will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is chosen. One entry per household, winning entry will be verified. Odds of winning depend on valid entries received. A Modern Day Fairy Tale is not responsible for prize delivery.